NEW YORK -- Sen. Charles Schumer says a breathable caffeine product that is about to hit stores in New York and Boston could be dangerous to young people.
The New York Democrat said Thursday that the product called AeroShot Pure Energy should be reviewed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. He said he fears it will be used as a club drug so that people can drink until they drop.
The AeroShot is a Chapstick-sized canister that lets users inhale caffeine in powdered form. Its manufacturer, Breathable Foods, says each AeroShot contains as much caffeine as a cup of coffee plus B vitamins. Schumes says each shot sends at least 100mg of powdered caffeine into the body.
"This product is nothing more than a party enhancer, designed to give users the ability to drink until they drop and it promotes dangerously excessive consumption of caffeine among youngsters and teens," said Schumer in a written statement.
"The product has never been tested for safety by the FDA, particularly among children and teens, and there are absolutely no controls on who can purchase it and how much they can ingest," Schumer added.
The company says AeroShot is safe but is not intended for children under 12.
Schumer says Breathable Foods should provide evidence to substantiate its health and safety claims.
Schumer says in his statement that because of the potentially harmful developmental and addictive effects of caffeine, the American Academy of Pediatrics discourages the non-medical use of caffeine by children and adolescents. The impact of inhaled caffeine on the lungs of children and teens has never been examined.
(Information from the Associated Press was used in this report).
